Hancock Estabrook adds attorneys from DeWitt firm in 2023

Hancock Estabrook, LLP has its downtown Syracuse office located inside Equitable Tower I.

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — As 2023 winds to a close, Hancock Estabrook, LLP says it currently has 120 employees, including 63 lawyers. The firm made headlines earlier this year when attorneys Frank W. Miller, Thomas J. Murphy, and Giancarlo Facciponte of the Law Firm of Frank W. Miller joined Hancock Estabrook back in June. Miller and […]

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SYRACUSE, N.Y. — As 2023 winds to a close, Hancock Estabrook, LLP says it currently has 120 employees, including 63 lawyers.

The firm made headlines earlier this year when attorneys Frank W. Miller, Thomas J. Murphy, and Giancarlo Facciponte of the Law Firm of Frank W. Miller joined Hancock Estabrook back in June. Miller and Murphy came aboard as partners, while Facciponte joined as an associate, per the Hancock Estabrook website. The lawyers involved focus on civil litigation, employment law, and education law. 

The Frank W. Miller Law Firm had operated on its own since 2001. It was previously located at 6575 Kirkville Road in the town of DeWitt.

Within the last few months, Hancock Estabrook announced that Caroline M. Bertholf joined as an associate in the firm’s trusts & estates department. She focuses her practice on trusts and estates matters, including estate planning and administration, elder law, and wealth-transfer planning.

Hancock Estabrook also added Erica Masler as an associate attorney in the firm’s litigation department. Masler focuses her practice in the areas of general civil litigation, commercial litigation, personal-injury defense, and products-liability defense, the firm announced. She regularly assists clients with navigating the legal process while providing practical advice to limit exposures and minimize risks. 

Hancock Estabrook on May 16 announced it had added corporate and commercial real-estate attorney John Appler as a partner in the firm. Appler joined the firm’s corporate and real-estate practice areas, concentrating his practice on business law, commercial real estate, and private-equity funding. 

Timothy P. Murphy, managing partner of Hancock Estabrook, tells CNYBJ that the firm is “proud of the work our people do” and the ability of the firm to support that work and to improve the lives of individuals and to strengthen the region’s communities.

“We are proud to have made Syracuse our headquarters since 1889,” Murphy said in a statement to CNYBJ. “As we prepare to celebrate our 135th anniversary, we reflect on our core values — our uncompromising commitment to provide our clients with the highest caliber of legal work and our equally strong commitment to keep Central New York a great place to live.” 

Murphy went on to say, “We are very excited about the tremendous opportunities and growth our area is experiencing due to Micron’s plans to build the country’s largest semiconductor plant in Clay.”

Heading into 2024, Hancock Estabrook says it plans to continue giving back to the community through charitable contributions and volunteer service. Examples of that service include teaming up with the Syracuse University College of Law and Volunteer Lawyers Project of CNY for “Valor Day,” providing free legal assistance to veterans. 

In addition, the firm also participates in Book Buddies, a program sponsored by the Syracuse City School District and United Way of Central New York that focuses on reading by pairing elementary school children with firm personnel who come to their school every week to read to them.        

Eric Reinhardt: